


Beer Pong Penalty

by Effyeahzimbits



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: M/M, Piercings, beer pong, jack/bitty - Freeform, lots of hangovers lol, zimbits - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-22
Updated: 2018-03-22
Packaged: 2019-04-06 16:43:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14061129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Effyeahzimbits/pseuds/Effyeahzimbits
Summary: Summary: Anyone who loses beer pong must face the penalty. The day comes for Eric Richard Bittle to put his money where his mouth is.Warnings: Swearing. Description of piercings. Many hangovers.





	Beer Pong Penalty

Beer Pong Penalty

 

     He’d been hit by a truck. That was the only possible explanation for the ungodly pounding in his head. He was going to open his eyes and find himself in hospital and covered in bandages and being doted upon by his beautiful Canadian Adonis boyfriend. Said Canadian Adonis boyfriend was going to be dressed in nothing but the tightest little underwear and spoon feeding him his dear old Moomaw’s Georgian peach pie.

     So, when he did finally wrench his eyes open, Bitty was thoroughly disappointed to find himself staring up at the peeling grey ceiling of the Haus’ lounge area. It took a moment for the realisation to sink into his hungover brain, but when it finally did, he let out a disgusted squeak and quickly rolled off the germ ridden couch and onto the floor. The grubby carpet was littered with plastic red cups and empty plates and other remains, but it was still preferable to that green cesspit of Hell.

     Bitty groaned miserably and pressed the heels of his palms to his aching eyes in a futile attempt at forcing the headache away. Memories of the previous night’s party came flooding back, including the gross tequila that had cost Ransom a grand total of six bucks and the cocktails that Shitty had fervently claimed to be mimosas but had contained the distinct burn of cheap vodka. Sober Eric always declared that he was going to have an easy night and wouldn’t get too drunk. Sober Eric was a dirty liar.

     He sighed heavily and let his arms flop to his sides, gazing up at the ceiling with all the energy of a dead fish. Truthfully, he couldn’t remember any of the finer details. He knew there had been beer pong in there somewhere (he always lost catastrophically), a little crazy dancing to Beyoncé had also happened at some point (Holster always liked to indulge him), and Bitty wasn’t entirely sure at this point but he might have taken a lot of tipsy selfies and sent them to Jack. When he had the strength to sit up he’d check his phone.

     He spent ten whole minutes convincing himself that the headache was going to miraculously vanish if he laid still long enough. It didn’t of course, and he finally decided to drag himself up with a dramatic groan. The room spun so violently he thought he was going to blow chunks. The couch would look considerably better soaked in vomit, he mused, but the thought of cleaning it up made him think better of it. Instead he used it to haul himself up and onto his unsteady feet. He wobbled only a little, and after a couple of deep breaths the nausea settled enough for him to make it into the kitchen.

     He kicked more cups and plates and – _was that a bra?_ – out of the way as he padded through, and he was pretty sure he could hear someone snoring somewhere, though he didn’t see any limbs sticking out from underneath the furniture. His beloved kitchen was completely trashed, though he hadn’t expected any different. If he’d recovered enough by this afternoon then he would blitz the whole place top to bottom with industrial strength bleach, but for now he’d suffer through the mess to get a cup of coffee.

     The coffee beans took ages to grind and he stared at them with a dead expression, the steady _drip drip_ of the black liquid hammering into his brain. It had only meant to be a few casual drinks to celebrate their latest winning game, but things grew dark when Ransom pulled out that stupid tequila. The bottle stood half empty on the counter, it’s plastic moustached sombrero lid practically mocking him. He had a sudden burst of energy and tossed the alcohol deep into the trash, hiding it under a stack of Chinese takeaway cartons. If Ransom asked, he’d play dumb and pretended he had no idea where it went.

     He dug his old faded mug out of the sink and poured steaming hot coffee into it without even rinsing the porcelain. And because he would never be broken inside enough to drink it black, he dumped as much sugar and caramel creamer into it as he could stomach. He sat at the table to slurp it, trying to blink away the cobwebs. He scalded his tongue more than once and the sting woke him up a little more.

     It was only after the second cup did he start feeling more human. He’d heard the front door open and close a couple of times and assumed some of their guests were starting to rouse and realise they were in the wrong house. He hoped someone reclaimed the bra. Holster had turned the last one into a hat of shame for whoever came last at beer pong. Bitty had had to wear it for a whole half an hour last night. Remembering he probably sent Jack a picture of that too, he took up his phone and scrolled through his messages. Of course, there was a selfie of him in the bra hat. There were lots of selfies in fact. He started out looking quite cute and presentable, until the last one where his hair was sticking up in all directions and his cheek was smeared in Lardo’s purple lipstick and his nice blue shirt was drenched in the vivid orange fake mimosa concoction. Luckily Jack had only seemed to grow even more amused as his sobriety deteriorated.

     Jack had of course already sent him his usual good morning text three hours ago. Sleeping in for Jack meant waking up at seven am, and he always went for a run half an hour later. At first Bitty teased him for it, calling him an exercise freak, but then he’d learned that Jack’s anxiety medication had a bad habit of making him feel drowsy, and the morning runs helped to wake up his foggy brain. Bitty continued to chirp him for it, but only because it made Jack laugh. He was still learning a lot about Jack, and each nuance he discovered only made him fall in love with his former captain even more.

     He was just tapping out a reply with his own good morning and apologising for the ridiculous selfies when the Haus started to come back to life around him. Ransom and Holster descended the stairs first, looking like they’d taken in a bath in neat vodka and then slept in a ditch. The frogs and tadpoles followed them, and Bitty assumed they’d all crashed on Chowder’s floor because the last he’d seen of them they were playing ring of fire with the volleyball girls in Chowder’s bedroom. Then finally Lardo and Shitty crammed themselves in the tiny kitchen too, helping themselves to the rest of the coffee and whatever food they could scrape together from the remnants that were left from the night before.

     “So, Bits,” Shitty chirped in a voice that was far too disgustingly cheerful for Bitty’s delicate head.

     He was naked as the day he was born and perched on one of the counter tops. Bitty wondered if there was a bleach that was stronger than industrial strength and where he could buy five gallons of it.

     “When are we heading into town, ya crazy little fucker?”

     Bitty lifted his heavy head and narrowed his eyes at his friend.

     “What?” he asked eloquently, his voice hoarse from the alcohol abuse. “Why would I want to go into town?”

     He wasn’t going to step one foot out of the Haus today. He was going to go straight up to bed and sleep until his head exploded and he died, or the hangover wore off. Whichever came first.

     “Dude, don’t you remember the bet?” Ransom asked gleefully. “You know, the beer pong bet?”

     Bitty wracked his cotton wool filled brain but could definitely not remember any bet relating to his spectacular loss. He remembered the honour belch, that was difficult to forget, but certainly no bet. He shook his head, creasing his brow in a frown.

     “Bro. Bro,” Ransom seized his shoulder, looking like all his birthdays had come at once and not like he’d had a disgusting hangover not two minutes ago. “You have to go get a piercing.”

     “I have to get a what?”

     Bitty blinked at him, straining his eyes through the fogginess to frown at his friend’s ecstatic face. He had to have misheard him. There was no way he would agree to anything like that, no matter how shitfaced he was. He shook his head, ignoring the throbbing between his temples.

     “You heard the man!” Shitty crowed, grinning just as widely. “You were going on all night about how you’d always wanted a piercing, so we decided to make you put your money where your fucking mouth is.”

     “He’s right,” Lardo told Bitty with a smirk, and around them, the rest of the team were laughing as they recalled the events from the night before. “You promised, Bits. If you lost the game, your penalty would be to go and get that piercing.”

     “Y’all’re lying,” Bitty said slowly, glaring at them all when his friends just cracked up laughing. “I agreed to no such thing. Prove it.”

     “Bits,” Shitty said gleefully, clapping a hand over his shoulder. “Bits. My sweet, spicy southern beauty. You have just asked a motherfucking lawyer to prove something.”

     Bitty’s glare dropped slightly when he realised exactly that, but he attached it back into place a moment later. He folded his arms obstinately, watching Shitty scroll through his phone with a huge grin on his face. A moment later, his own voice filled the kitchen, a little high pitched and definitely tipsy.

     “ _I, Eric Richard Bittle_ ,” the recording began, making Bitty cringe. “ _Hereby announce that my penalty for suffering a crushing defeat at beer pong, will be to obtain exactly one piercing in a place of my choosing, tomorrow the fifteenth of May._ ”

     Bitty’s mouth dropped open. He had clearly been reading from a handwritten sheet, as he’d stumbled over words between drunken giggles. The others roared with laughter at Bitty’s horrified expression, and Shitty smugly put his phone back onto the table. Bitty stared at it as if it had personally thrown out all the butter in the house.

     “Shall I get my car keys?” Lardo smirked, slinging an arm around his shoulders.

     Bitty couldn’t speak. It’s true, he had always entertained the idea of a piercing, but never seriously. His mother would kill him for one. And he never thought he’d ever actually have the guts to go through with it. But a bet was a bet. He couldn’t back out of a beer pong penalty. It was written in the Haus rules. He sighed in defeat. At least he could choose where he was going to have it.

     “Lord, I must have been so drunk,” he groaned, sinking his face into his hands.

     The others’ laughter drilled through his brain, reminding him of his crippling hangover. He wasn’t stupid enough to get a piercing with so much alcohol in his system, so he waved his coffee cup in Holster’s general direction. It was instantly plucked from his hands and refilled. It appeared by his side a moment later, filled with wonderful creamy caramel flavoured coffee.

     “If I’m doing this, I need food,” he pouted, dragging the mug close and inhaling the fumes in the hopes that it would bring him back to life.

     Ransom leapt towards the fridge for ingredients comically fast. Bitty couldn’t resist the smirk as he watched his friends scramble to make a hearty breakfast. He took his phone again and swiped open the front facing camera, appraising his face in the screen. His ear would be the obvious option, but Bitty figured if he was going to do this then he might as well go all out. He turned his face to the side, humming thoughtfully as he tried to imagine a shiny stud in various places.

     By the time breakfast appeared in front of him – a large plate of eggs and waffles and bacon – he was starting to feel excited. Now that he was more comfortable with himself, he had started playing around with his own personal style, and a piercing would be an extension of that, albeit a little more extreme. He figured if he didn’t like it, he’d just take it out, though he’d hate to waste money like that.

     “Eyebrow,” he finally announced, putting his phone down and picking up his fork instead. “I’m going to get my right eyebrow pierced.”

     “Dude,” Ransom whistled, lifting his own eyebrows. “You will look so hot with an eyebrow piercing. Good choice.”

     The others all nodded and offered their own words of encouragement between shovelling food into their mouths. Bitty grinned widely and tucked into his own breakfast, practically buzzing with excitement already. He realised he hadn’t finished his text to Jack and took up his phone again, chewing as he typed. He wondered what Jack would think and considered asking for his opinion, but eventually decided against it. He loved Jack, and valued his thoughts, but he didn’t want to risk his boyfriend putting him off the idea. It would be a surprise instead.

     After breakfast, Bitty took a long shower. The hot water washed away the cobwebs and he stepped out into the steamy room feeling fresher and brighter. He dressed and dried his hair in record time, meeting Shitty and Lardo in the kitchen. Luckily, Lardo hadn’t drank the night before, and was perfectly chipper. A little while later, they all piled into her tiny car and headed off into town.

     There was a small tattoo parlour on the outskirts, popular among the Samwell student body for it’s friendly staff and attractive prices. Lardo knew it well after accompanying a few of her course mates, and had assured Bitty that it was a safe and trustworthy place. As they neared town though, Bitty’s nerves started to kick in and he began tapping his fingers impatiently on the door handle. It wasn’t the pain he was worried about. Not much, anyway. He was more worried about how he might look with it, what Jack would say, what his mother would say.

     By the time Lardo pulled into a parking space, he was starting to feel a little sick.

     “Hey, Bits,” Shitty murmured, catching his attention.

     Bitty looked up to see both Shitty and Lardo turning towards him from their front seats, both wearing soft expressions that he couldn’t quite read.

     “If you wanna back out, we won’t say anything brah,” Shitty reassured him.

     “Right. We’ll say they were closed or something. We don’t want to force you into doing this if you really don’t want to,” Lardo added.

      Bitty looked at both of their faces, touched by their obvious concern. As much as they’d encouraged him back at the Haus, they weren’t about to coerce him into something like this if he genuinely didn’t want to do it. Bitty smiled, his heart swelling with a warm affection for the pair of them. He felt his nerves melting away, leaving that excitement once more.

     “Let’s do this,” he grinned widely, laughing when both of their faces lit up.

     He hopped gracefully out of the car, having to resist the urge to scamper into the shop like a thrilled child heading into a toy store. Instead he strode through the door confidently with his head held high. A shrill buzzing noise that irritated his ears came from the back of the shop, where he could see a big, colourful woman hunched over a client, her hand moving rhythmically over their arm. There was a man at the counter by the large window, and after a nudge from Lardo, Bitty headed over.

     It was a small room, and the walls were adorned with hundreds of flash designs and posters. It smelled strongly of antiseptic too, and Bitty focussed on that instead of the awful buzzing. The man at the counter was young, tanned and heavily tattooed, and flashed them all a wide smile as they approached. He nodded at Lardo, obviously recognising her.

     “Hey, what’s up? How can I help?” He asked, when he realised that it was Bitty who was interested in getting something.

     “I’d like a piercing please. My eyebrow,” Bitty grinned, the excitement evident in his voice.

     Both Shitty and Lardo snickered at his lack of chill, sinking into a row of seats on the far wall.

     “Sure. I just need you to fill this form for me,” the assistant replied, sliding a sheet of paper over the counter towards him. “And I need to see some ID too.”

     It was tempting to skim the boring questions about allergies and scribble his signature, but Bitty forced himself to read it properly and answer honestly. He was that keen on getting this done now that he didn’t want to ruin it by doing something stupid. Once he was satisfied, he signed his name and pulled out his driving license, along with the forty bucks required.

     He perused the selection of body jewellery available while the assistant read over his form and made a copy of his ID. He was already fantasising about the elaborate and brightly coloured bars he could wear after it had finished healing. At the back of his mind he worried about what his mama and Jack might say, but he quickly squashed the thoughts down. He was a grown man and could make these decisions for himself.

     The assistant called him over towards the back of the shop. Bitty flashed Lardo and Shitty one last excited grin, then headed around the counter and into the sterile workroom. The colourful tattooist looked up from her work and winked playfully at him even as her client grimaced in pain. Bitty walked past them towards the large, paper covered bench and lithely hopped up after the assistant gestured towards it.

“My name’s Danny,” the man smiled, taking supplies from the shelf and placing them on the small trolley beside him. “My job isn’t to hurt you, okay? I’ll be as gentle as I can. While sticking a huge needle in your face,” he grinned widely.

     Bitty laughed and nodded, grateful for Danny’s humour. It settled his nerves a little bit. He calmly placed his palms flat down on the bench, focussing on the rough paper beneath them. He watched Danny meticulously clean his surfaces and readied the equipment.

     “Here’s a selection of eyebrow bars we can use. Any take your fancy?” Danny asked, showing Bitty a small selection of jewellery in a case on the wall.

     Bitty hummed thoughtfully as he inspected them. There were a few plain ones in different colours, and others that were adorned with crystals. He didn’t want anything too flashy, but none of the plain ones interested him either. At the end of the row was a small curved bar in a metallic rainbow that he instantly thought was perfect. The colour was subtle, but was one that resonated with him.

     “That one please,” Bitty grinned, pointing it out.

     Danny took the required piece of jewellery and sterilised it carefully before unscrewing a ball at one end, ready to be inserted in the fresh piercing. With that done, he took a marker and carefully placed a dot above Bitty’s right eyebrow.

     “Does that look like the right spot?” Danny asked, nodding towards the huge mirror that ran along one wall.

     Bitty turned to look, examining the small green mark. His stomach churned with nerves again. He caught Shitty and Lardo’s faces in the glass and they both gave him huge grins and thumbs up. He laughed, he took a deep breath and nodded.

     “Yep. Looks good. Let’s do it.”

     Bitty found it easier if he watched Danny’s hands pulling on gloves rather than focus on his racing heart. He wasn’t going to look in the mirror, and he really wasn’t going to look at the needle waiting in its sanitary container. Danny carefully pinched his brow between two fingers and secured a tight clamp over the skin. It wasn’t painful, but it was uncomfortable, and when he saw Danny go for the needle, Bitty closed his eyes.

     “You ready, dude?” Danny’s voice came gently from somewhere in front of him.

     “Ready,” Bitty replied in a voice that was surprisingly steady.

     He felt Danny stabilise the clamp, and then a moment later a sharp, stabbing pain blossomed in his brow. Bitty inhaled abruptly, but did his best to stay still. The shooting pain faded almost instantly to an intense sting that flared a little as Danny fiddled with the bar, and then settled down again. When Danny gently released the clamp, Bitty opened his eyes and let out a relieved laugh, his shoulders slumping. He hadn’t even realised he’d been tensing them.

     “All done,” Danny announced with a bright grin. “It really suits you, take a look.”

     Bitty turned to examine his face in the mirror, ignoring Shitty and Lardo’s loud and excited hoots of celebration from the other side of the counter. His right eyebrow was already swelling around the curved bar, but Bitty already loved the shiny metal that accentuated the curve of his brow. Danny was right, it really did suit him.

     “It looks amazing, thank you!” Bitty laughed, turning to give Danny his biggest grin.

     “No problem, I’m glad you like it,” Danny laughed, disposing of the needle before tugging off his gloves. “Okay so that’s gonna sting for a bitch for a few days, take an Advil if it gets too bad. You should clean it at least twice a day with warm saltwater and avoid touching it at all. The swelling should go down soon, but don’t change it for a smaller bar for at least eight weeks.”

     “Got it,” Bitty nodded, determined to listen to Danny’s every word.

     He had the whole summer to let it heal, and hopefully it would be fine long before he had to put on a hockey helmet again.

     “I can do it for you if you don’t want to try it yourself. And if you have any questions, just give me a call, okay?”

     Danny took a small business card from the counter and offered it out. Bitty took it and hopped off the bench, sliding the card into his back pocket. He thanked Danny again and made his way back around the counter. Shitty and Lardo instantly started hollering and grabbed him the moment he was in reach.

     “You motherfucking stunner,” Shitty gushed, sounding weirdly choked up. “It’s perfect.”

     “It looks good on you,” Lardo agreed with a wide grin, slinging her arm around his shoulders as they headed out of the shop.

     “Thanks,” Bitty laughed, starting to feel a little drained from all the adrenalin. “It didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would. Stings though.”

     “Let’s go get lunch,” Lardo suggested, guiding him towards a nearby Subway restaurant instead of her car. “We should get some sugar in you.”

     Many hours later, after lunch, a raucous drive back to the Haus, and answering questions fired at him from the other members of the SMH, Bitty finally found himself perched cross-legged on his bed with his laptop open in front of him. He’d refrained from taking any selfies until he’d shown Jack despite being desperate to flash it all over Twitter. Maybe he’d take one before bed, but right now all he wanted to do was talk to his boyfriend.

     Jack picked up after three rings. He was freshly showered, his damp hair curling as it dried. He had a sleepy smile on his face, worn out from his game. Bitty’s heart swelled with affection just from the sight of him.

     “Hi, Sweetpea.”

     “Hey Bits. How was-?"

     Jack broke off his sentence midway, his mouth forming a perfect little ‘o’. He frowned and leaned forward, squinting at the screen. Bitty didn’t say anything and smiled calmly. His eyebrow was red and swollen, but he knew the piercing would be clearly visible.

     “Did you get your eyebrow pierced?” Jack asked softly, his blue eyes wide.

     “Yep!” Bitty chirped with a laugh, feeling overwhelmed with giddiness when Jack seemed more in awe than anything else. “It was my pong penalty from last night. What do you think?”

     Jack was quiet for a moment, eyes scanning Bitty’s face again. He smiled widely and nodded, completely unaware he was making Bitty’s heart flutter.

     “I really like it,” he admitted softly. “You look really good.”

     Bitty could argue that Jack always thought he looked good, but the compliment made him beam all the same.

     “Thanks, sugar. I really love how it looks. I can’t wait for it to be all healed up. Lord knows what my mama will say about it,” Bitty laughed, a little too high pitched.

     Lots of men had pierced eyebrows, it wasn’t like it was a ‘feminine’ piercing, but he was still a little worried that it would only emphasise his sexuality. He was still getting his head around the idea that he was allowed to be proud of who he was and what anyone else thought wasn’t his problem. Though feeling that pride was a lot harder when he couldn’t muster up the courage to come out to his mother. Staying with Jack for the summer was sounding more and more appealing. Jack could tell him that he was an adult and could make decisions whether he had his mother’s approval or not, but he sensed that it wasn’t the right time for that conversation. Bitty had had a fun and exciting weekend, and Jack didn’t want to ruin his good mood by bringing up such intense topics. They could talk about it another day. So, Jack just smiled and told him he looked nice again.

     The bright smile on Bitty’s face meant it was appreciated.

     “Are you going to get any more?” Jack wondered, shifting into a more comfortable position.

     “I’m not sure,” Bitty hummed. “I haven’t thought about it. I don’t think I’ll be like you and your tattoos though,” he teased playfully.

     Jack had booked himself in for a tattoo session in late July, just in case the Falconers made playoffs. It would be his first, and was working with Lardo on a small and meaningful design that was top secret. The trouble was once he’d started thinking about them, he found himself thinking of possibilities for more designs and where they might go on his body. Lardo had warned him that getting your first tattoo was a slippery slope, and he was starting to see why.

     “Hm, shame,” Jack joked with a lopsided grin.

     Bitty gracefully raised an eyebrow and smirked. It was hard to tell through a computer screen, but he knew Jack well enough by now to tell when he was starting to get excited. His pale cheeks were beginning to flush, and his eyes seemed dark and even more smouldering than usual.

     “Mr. Zimmermann. Is my piercing turning you on right now?” Bitty purred lowly, carefully moving his computer off his lap and onto the bed in front of him.

     “It’s not the piercing,” Jack argued with a laugh. His cheeks went even pinker after being called out. “Though it does look amazing. It’s you. How confident you are and how you know you look good.”

     Bitty inwardly softened a little, smitten with how Jack looked at him. It was something he could revel in later, when it was dark and he was ready to go to sleep. For now, he deftly whipped off his thin t-shirt, careful not to catch his new piercing.

     “Well then, honey. Make your handsome self comfortable and I’ll show you just how confident I am.”  
  
The End

**Author's Note:**

> A.N: Please do not get piercings after nights of heavy drinking. I took creative license with this lmao.
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> You can find me on Tumblr as effyeahzimbits. I'd love to see you there!


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